be in mercy to them let it come never so soon and they are so fit for Heaven as that to be sure they shall not miss of it Col 1. 12 13 14. And so now you see what excellent Uses may be made of this Freedom and thereupon what an excellent Freedom this must needs be Now you that are in it I beseech you put your Freedom to these good Uses which I have set before you let it teach you to pitty poor sinners to get more understanding in the Gospel let it endear Christ to you let it comfort your hearts let it make the ways of God sweet to you and you useful Prize the Saints let it strengthen your faith be enriched by it in all goodness let it make you very humble and engage you to Christ in the strictest obedience and to be ready against your Lord shall come CHAP. XI Concerning the many wonders that may be observed in this Freedom THE Seventh and Last thing to set out the excellency of this Freedom is to speak something of the many Wonders that may be observed in it Beloved if ever there were any thing to be wondered at since the beginning of the World this Freedom is to be wondered at there 's enough in it to amaze and astonish every beholder You know people are mightily taken with seeing of rare sights and the hearing of strange news but never did any thing present you with such rare sights nor bring such strange news to your ears as this Freedom doth The whole story of it is wonderful from first to last it begins in Wonders and goes on in Wonders and is finished in Wonders The Freedom that God gave his people from other Bondages for their worldly condition were attended and accompanied with great Wonders so 't was when he brought them out of Egypt God was a Wonder-working God at that time I will smite Egypt saith he with all my wonders When he came to deliver Israel every one of the ten Plagues were Wonders the drying up of the Red-Sea the causing of his people to pass through the midst of it the drowning of all their Enemies by the returning of the Waters upon them they were great and marvellous works and so 't was when he brought them out of the captivity in Babylon he did such strange and great things then that his people were like to them that dreamed Psal 126. 1. they were great things in the eyes of their very Enemies as well as in their own eyes vers 2 3. But now this same spiritual Freedom is the Wonder of Wonders I might observe to you how that in many places of the Scripture where this Freedom is spoken of 't is brought in with this word behold that 's put before it as who should say do you mind what a Wonder here is Can you pass it by without admiration see it in Isa 7. 14. chap. 28. 16. chap. 42. 1. Jer. 23. 5 6. Zech. 9. 9. Luk. 2. 10. Joh. 1. 29. 1 Joh. 3. 1. and in Isa 9. 6. When Christ is prophecied of that he should come into the World for the giving of this Freedom amongst all his other names this is one and the first that is mentioned that he should be wonderful But now to come to Particulars If I should insist upon all the Wonders belonging to this Freedom I should be too large and indeed the Subject that I am upon doth not require any more than that I should speak so far of the Wonders in it as may serve to set out the excellency of this Freedom And therfore I do willingly omit the Wonders that may be observed in the Incarnation Conception Birth Life Death Resurection and Assention of Christ and shall only lay before you such Wonders as by which you may see as I said that this is an excellent Freedom I will mention ten of them 1. What a Wonder is this That the greatest loss should be turned into the greatest gain 't is so by this Freedom it brings Saints the best estate that ever they were in out of the worst estate that ever they were in 'T was never so low with them as it 't was by the Fall of man 't was never so high with them as it is by this Freedom by Christ by which they are recovered from that Paul saith Phil. 3. 7. That the things that were gain to him became loss for Christ and they who are the Children of God may also say that the things that were loss to them are become gain by Christ Oh how have they gained by the fall And yet beloved we must not rejoyce in the fall while we look barely upon that No 't is matter of heart-breaking sorrow to think that ever Adam and the World in him sinned away their innocency as they did and 't will be matter of everlasting mourning to many millions in Hell that Adam did not abide in that honour which God gave him at the first but we may and we must rejoyce in Christ who turns even this great evil to the great good of all that believe in him to them it is according to Sampsons riddle Out of the eater came forth meat and out of the strong came forth sweetness If ever there were a blessed loss this was it considering how God took occasion from it to magnifie the riches of his Grace in his Son This Wonder you have set forth in Rom. 5. 17 18 19. where he speaks how we were ruined in the first Adam and raised in the second 2. That every sin that a man hath committed should be damnable and yet that all the sins that he hath committed shall not damn him Certainly there must be some wonderful way found out to bring this to pass why now this Freedom by Christ doth it 'T is the nature of every sin to deserve Hell not only the evils and miseries of this present life but also everlasting wrath in the World to come and who ever is not made free by Christ shall find that every sin is a deadly sin and that 't is not a Purgatory shall serve their turn to cleanse them from the least transgression Oh what a cursed practise is this of the Papists to harden sinners hearts thus as if some sins were of such a small guilt and of such a venial nature as if Hell were a place of too great torment for them but we say as Paul in another case Nay O man who art thou that repliest against God Doth not this word say that death is the wages of sin Rom. 6. ult of sin as 't is sin and by death there is meant that which is in opposition to eternal life But now this Freedom makes innumerable damnable sins not to damn would you not count it a wonderful thing if there should be such a thing as were able to quench unquenchable fire Why this Freedom does it for those that have it it puts cut the Fire of Hell to them Beloved if you would imagine
saies again vers 18. I beheld Satan as lightning fall from Heaven As if he should say I foresaw this when I sent you out that it would be so I knew that he would come down as swift as the lightning Beloved this Freedom makes sinners vomit up Devils where it comes what a wonderful thing is this 7. That the dead should be raised would you not Wonder to see a man raised from the dead If so be that any of you should stand in a Church-yard and while you are looking upon a grave and think of the person that lies dead and buried there and how many years ago it is since he died and that now he were rotten and consumed to see him come forth and stand up and live Why now such a marvellous work is done by this Freedom it hath spiritually opened the graves of many thousand Souls and blessed be God we are not without some such that live and walk amongst us at this day and that are with us in this Congregation Beloved do but turn your eyes now and look upon such a man and such a woman that fears God and you have this wonderful sight before you concerning whom it may be said as in Eph. 2. 1. And you hath he quickned who were dead in trespasses and sins By this Freedom God shews Wonders to the dead the dead arise and praise him Psal 88. 10 11 12. Wilt thou shew wonders to the dead shall the dead arise and praise thee Selah Shall thy loving-kindness be declared in the grave or thy faithfulness in destruction Shall thy wonders be known in the dark and thy righteousness in the land of forgetfulness Why yes God doth so in this case that I am upon And therefore if you that have any Relations any Children any Friends that are for the condition of their Souls stark dead you cannot perceive the least motion or breathing in them towards God or any thing that is good Why 't is true indeed if you be spiritually alive your selves you can't but do that which persons use to do for their Friends that are dead you cannot but mourn for them and in this sense you may and you must do that which would be a great sin in another sense you may pray for the dead and you may be stirred up to it by the consideration of the wonderful nature of this Freedom that it is a thing that will put life into the dead You may look upon a wicked Child or Relation it may be so far gone in sin that they are even past hope as we use to do upon people when they are dead oh as long as they were alive tho very sick yet while there 's life there is hope as we use to say but when we see they are dead then hope is gone Yea but as to this I am speaking of how know you but Christ may come to the grave of that dead Soul and raise it as he did to Lazarus So beloved we that are Ministers of Christ we preach of this Freedom to you and as to divers of you we are afraid we preach to the dead and one would think Why then what hope is there were it not as good to give over Oh no! Preach we must for all this in hope that you may live we are sure that if God please to give you this Freedom tho you have it not yet when it comes it shall do Wonders in you 't will fetch you out of your graves Our Preaching to sinners 't is like Ezekiels prophecying to the dry bones cap. 37. God brought him and set him down in the midst of a Valley full of them vers 1 2. and when he had been viewing them well and seen what a sad Spectacle there was now Son of man can these bones live saith he dost think 't is possible that ever they should live And he answered O Lord God thou knowest As if he should say O Lord that 's with thee who can resolve that but thy self verse 3. Well in vers 4. Come do thou prophecy upon them saith God and keep on prophecying and see what I will do by it Now vers 7. the Prophet prophesied as he was commanded As if he should say That I did and that was all that I could do but mark what wonderful success here was see vers 7 8 9 10. and you read in vers 10. that they lived c. The Lord bless our preaching as he blessed Ezekiels prophecying here 8. That Death it self should be killed Is not this a strange thing You know what a killing thing Death is you have heard of many and seen many that have been slain by it it is a killing all over the World Whether you consider Death naturally or spiritually what a great destroyer ' t is But now that there should be something that should cause Death it self to dye would not this be a wonder why this Freedom doth it it kills the bodily death by the Resurrection of the body it kills the spiritual Death by their being risen with Christ it kills the eternal Death by giving them eternal Life You have two Verses in Joh. 11. 25 26. that speak to this says our Saviour there I am the resurrection and the life he that believeth in me tho he were dead yet shall he live And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never dye See also 1 Cor. 15. 54 55 56 57. So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption and this mortal shall have put on immortality then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written Death is swallowed up in victory O death where is thy sting O grave where is thy victory The sting of death is sin and the strength of sin is the law But thanks be to God which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ 9. That a man should be made able to do all things Would you not Wonder to see a man that is so able It may be you will not believe that there is any such man in the World Nay that if he could do all things he would not be a man and 't is true if you take all things in the largest sense he cannot do all things that God can do but he can do all things through God that he hath to do Phil. 4. 11. A true Christian is in some sense weak and yet strong as Paul saith When I am weak then am I strong 2 Cor. 12. 10. And says our Saviour to the man that brought to him his Son possessed with a Devil beseeching him to help him Mark 9. 23 If thou canst believe all things are possible to him that believeth As if he should say Art thou got into Freedom if so there 's nothing that thou hast to do but thou maist go through with it by faith in me A man that hath this Freedom and improves it as he should do he can be poor he can be rich he can do and he can suffer he can live
his conscience and great zeal for the purity of Gospel-worship kept him from conformity Hereupon with some thousands of his brethren he was slain by that fatal Axe the Act of Bartholomew-day O! when will the living God give them resurrection Lord revive thy work in the midst of our days in the midst of judgment remember mercy These Abels tho dead are yet speaking The Bush burns and is not consumed Certainly God hath some great work for them who tho sentenced unto death are yet alive We hope in the living God who quickneth the dead who hath delivered them from many and great deaths we hope I say that he will yet deliver them from this death also For sometime after his silencing Mr. Ball lived in the same Parish where he had been formerly Minister and when the Oxford Act came forth he removed five Miles farther Where he peaceably behaved himself and won upon many of a different perswasion by his moderation sweetness of deportment and holy and unblameable conversation He bore a singular love to all that lookt heavenward tho of a different perswasion from himself therefore kept up a brotherly and Christian correspondence with that worthy Conformist in whose Parish he lived He judged it his duty to preach and that necessity was laid upon him a wo unto him if he did not preach the Gospel Hereupon be neither could nor would be idle but preached frequently and studied to preach in such times and places as were least offensive to authority It grieved him to hear his spiritual children complain they wanted Bread when he had it for them Very many reaped the fruit and benefit of his labours since he was outed his publick Ministry as Cambridg Epping Bayford and other places to which he was related He spent himself in doing good to Souls for maintenance he relied upon that providence which feeds the fowls and cloathes the Lillies and was of blessed Mr. Hierons mind That God who feeds the Ravens would not starve his young Hierons And indeed his numerous family were maintained to a miracle He sought not the world but his God He did his masters work trusting to his bounty for wages and would often say he never lived better than when he knew not how to live He liv'd by faith upon Gods promises committed his ways unto God and had a firm perswasion that the Lord would provide for him and his which was verified He kept a Diary of Gods providences to himself and family of mercies and afflictions of supports and deliverances This quickned him unto thankfulness these experiences strengthned his faith and made him abound in hope in the Lord his God When his goods were seized on for preaching contrary to Law this holy man took that spoil patiently and joyfully knowing that he had a better and more enduring substance reserved in the Heavens and that those losses sustained for Christ and a good conscience would prove gains at last and work out for him a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory If he was concerned it was for his enemies whom he pitied from his Soul and for whom he prayed as his Lord and Master that they might be forgiven because they knew not that they did the Devils work His great labours in his Masters Vineyard shortned his days but drew him the nearer and sooner to his rest In his sickness his patience was most exemplary bearing his pains with a Christian fortitude resigning himself for life and death unto his Lords disposal For him to live was to glorifie Christ to die gain So he might be farther useful and serviceable in his Ministry he was well contented with life but to be dissolved and to be at home with Christ being better for him in case of unserviceableness this was earnestly desired by him To such as visited him in his languishing he gave serious counsels of providing in health for sickness in life for death in time for eternity He was much in prayer for the afflicted Church of God bitterly lamenting the case of England mourning for those great sins committed in the midst of us and trembling at the thoughts of those heavy Judgments hanging over our heads He sadly and sorrowfully laid to heart the unnatural breaches among Protestants the divisions of Reuben the quarrels and enmities among Joseph's Brethren especially now the Canaanite was in the Land He was grieved at the heart for the unbecoming lives of many Ministers and of multitudes of professors of so pure a Religion whose lives indeed are a flat contradiction to it and for whose abominations God would certainly visit unless there were speedy sincere and extraordinary humbling and reforming with seven worse plagues than ever But the Lord took him from the evil to come after he had languished for some time in a Consumption and breathed ardently after Heaven and Glory He was called upon as the Witnesses to come up hither He had long waited for his blessed charge and that salvation he had believed prayed and expected the Lord his Master whom he had faithfully served put him into the possession of at last He left this life for a better this vale of tears for a Paradise of joys for rivers of evelasting pleasures the eight day of September and in the year of our Lord 1681. and the 58th year of his age Blessed are the dead that dye in the Lord from henceforth yea saith the Spirit for they rest from their labours and their works follow them Spiritual Bondage AND FREEDOM John 8. 36. If the Son therefore shall make you free ye shall be free indeed CHAP. I. The Text opened The Doctrine inferred thence The first Branch of it handled FOR the making of our passage clear to this Text we must look back a little upon the foregoing Verses where we shall see that Christ is a preaching to the people and what the success of his preaching was In his preaching amongst other things I would desire you specially to take notice of Two things that he delivers concerning himself which I mention because I would by no means have you to let them pass because they are of great moment to your Souls One is that in ver 12. a very precious place Christ was sent to give light to the World i. e. to bring them out of that darkness which they are in by nature 'T is just as if a man stood in some dismal dark place where he can see nothing knows not where he is nor whither to go and one comes to him with a light and if he does but follow it it brings him into the open view of things So Christ those that follow him he leads them into the light of life into the light of spiritual life that he shall see spiritual things which no man doth or can that does not follow Christ and into the light of Eternal life where at last he shall see and be with God for ever So that all that live without Christ they
a dogs neck be that burneth incense as if he blessed an idol 2. It appears that Christ hath made full Satisfaction by this that he doth not continue his own offering up of himself he was to purchase this Freedom by the offering up of himself Now if he had no laid down a full Price why then he must have gone to his Sufferings again he must have died often as the Sacrifices under the Law because they were not full and could not make the comers to them perfect therefore they must be renewed but Christ offered up himself but once and there was enough See Heb. 9. 25 26. God never said to Christ Son you must die again this is such a great Debt that you have not paid enough 3. It will be further manifest that he cleared all the score by this That when he had offered up himself and rose again from the dead he was received up into glory Now he could never have come thither himself nor have brought any else thither if his Satisfaction had not been full See Heb. 10. 12. But this man after he had offered one sacrifice for sin for ever sat down at the right hand of God that is in token that he had made the comers to him perfect for so you have it in ver 14. If he had not 't is certain that he would have been in the Grave still 5. This Freedom was to come by one that was to die but not for himself if he had died for himself he had not been fit to die for others His Death must be altogether for the excusing and delivering of those who for their own Transgressions had deserved that the wrath of God should have fallen upon themselves He must be a Surety for others and one that could say I am bound for such and such persons Debts and being so I do acknowledge they are mine and I take them upon my self and here I come to discharge them Why thus it was with Christ and therefore Freedom comes by him he laid down his Life but he tells you 't was for his sheep Joh. 10. 15. He was not indebted a farthing token to God upon his own account Law and Justice had nothing to say to him nor nothing to do with him but only as he stood in our stead 2 Cor. 8. 9. He was rich yet for your sakes he became poor Mark for your sakes What had he done to offend God or to suffer such a cruel and painful and cursed death as he did Let all his Life be scanned to the utmost he would have been found innocent holy harmless undefiled separate from sinners And had it not been for others in whose behalf he indured all that Agony and bloody Sweat which he underwent it had nor consisted with the Justice of God to lay such things upon him But since he would put himself in our place out of his great love to poor lost sinners therefore 't was fit that God should deal thus severely with him as he did and 't was well for us that he laid on soundly upon Christ and did not spare him at all See that Scripture Isa 53. 5. He was wounded for our transgressions he was bruised for our iniquities the chastisement of our peace was upon him and with his stripes we are healed Mark here how Justice laid it on upon Christ q. d. What are you stept in to bear these blows that sinners have deserved should fall upon them Well I 'll not spare you a jot the more because you are my Son and then he falls to it in such a manner as that he wounded him and bruised him he crushed him as it were between the milstones of his wrath for our iniquities that he made him the saddest Spectacle to look upon that ever was And I say 't was well for us that Justice lashed Christ in this dreadful manner for with these stripes we are healed they were wounding stripes to Christ but they are healing stripes to us that Blood that this sin-revenging Hand fetch'd from Christ turns to be a precious Salve for our grievous Sore Hence 't is clear that Christ is the very Redeemer because 't was not for himself that all this was done to him See Dan. 9. 26. cut off but not for himself 6. This Freedom was to come by one who was witnessed to by all the Prophets under the Old Testament and to whom all things were to agree which they foretold Now thus it was with Christ and therefore Freedom comes by him See Act. 10. 43. To him gave all the Prophets witness c. And therefore you do often meet with this in the Story of Christ's Life and Death recorded in the Gospel this and that was done that the saying of such and such a Prophet might be fulfilled and that such a Scripture might be fulfilled all was fulfilled in Christ The Prophecies of the Old Testament they foretold out of what Nation he that was to be the Redeemer should arise viz. from among the Jews So did Christ saith the New Testament The Prophecies of the Old Testament foretold that he must be of the house of David and of the tribe of Judah So was Christ saith the New Testament That he was to be born of a Virgin So was Christ saith the New Testament That the place where he must be born must be Bethlehem and there the New Testament tells us Christ was born I cannot stand to quote Places about these and many other things of this sort study the Word for this compare Scriptures of the Old and New Testament together you 'll see how all doth exactly agree to Christ And therefore he is the true Redeemer and this Jesus whom I preach unto you is Christ But I shall go no further in this There are other Arguments that do more remotely prove that Freedom comes by Christ I will but hint at four 1. If it doth not why then observe upon how many things this would cast a lie It would cast a lie upon all the Ministry that preach the Gospel They tell you that Freedom comes by Christ and are or should be earnest with you to stir you up to come to him for Salvation What do you think they are all Deceivers Have they all conspired together throughout the World to put a cheat upon People Why how can this be They never met all together nor possibly could to plot such a business It casts a lie upon all the Apostles upon all the Prophets It would cast a lie upon all the Ordinances of Christ for they all lead to him It would cast a lie upon the Scriptures for they speak of him It would cast a lie upon the Angels in Heaven for they sang at his Birth Glory to God in the highest c. It would cast a lie upon Christ for he told the World that he was the Redeemer I am the light of the world and I am that bread of life and I am the resurrection and the life
put themselves upon such unwearied labours as they do but to provide for their Life and when they are sick and fallen into some dangerous disease what 's the great and the greatest fear that then most have Oh that their Life will be gone they prize Life so that when we would set out the doing of a thing with the greatest care we use to express it thus We did it as for our Lives and Life is such a precious thing that tho one lives in a great deal of pain and misery yet one is very loath to leave it And we shew what an high esteem we have of Life by the rejoycing that we have in us when any of our dear Relations have been dangerously sick and it hath pleased God that they have recovered again oh how glad are we that their Life is preserved that they shall continue longer with us and then when any one of them are taken away by Death why the sorrow and grief that follows upon that and the mourning that we make for deceased Friends confirms the truth of this that Life is an excellent thing Well now this Freedom by Christ is Life Joh. 6. 33. He giveth Life to the World and chap 5. 40. Ye will not come unto me that ye might have Life that is that you might have Freedom by me And here I will speak a little about this suitableness of this Name how suitable it is that this Freedom by Christ should be called Life You know Life puts a quickning Principle into them that have it so doth this Freedom by Christ Take notice of four things here 1. It puts Life into our Souls Souls do not live spiritually and unto God till they come into this Freedom Eph. 2. 1. they are only such as are interested in it that are passed from Death to Life Now to have a Soul that is dead within one is a dreadful thing and dead in the worst sense of all too for the Soul to be dead so as that it was never quickned 'T is true Gods Children complain many times how dead their hearts are and what great need they have of quickning and oh how much do they pray that they might not be so dead as they are as you shall see David often doth in Psal 119. 25 37 40 88 107 149 154 146 159. Yea but here is something to be considered that tho they are dead now it may be yet they have been quickned 't is not a deadness that is from want of Life but from want of liveliness but the deadness of those that are not made Free by Christ is such that speaks they were never quickned and so their Souls are dead in the worst sense of all they have no spiritual Life in them 2. This Fredom by Chrst it puts Life into Ordinances There be some that find the Ordinances of Christ living things as David saies Psal 119. 50. that he had found the word to be a living word But who are they that have this Experience Why they which are made Free by Christ I tell you opportunities and means of Grace are other manner of things to them than they are to others You that are yet in the Bondage of Sin you can speak nothing that such an Ordinance was blest to you at such a time and then another at another time you cannot say Oh the sweet Communion that I had with God upon such a Sabbath and at such a Sermon You had such a meeting with Jesus Christ and there were such incomes from the Lord upon your Spirits and such drawings out of your hearts towards God that you would not for the whole World but you had been there but they that are made Free there be those amongst them that can say so I my self heard a good man say once after Prayer had been made to God by a Minister in the company of some Christians who were together to that purpose that he would not for all the World but he had been there that time And what do you think made David speak that in Psal 84. 10. A day in thy courts is better than a thousand but because he being one that belonged to Christ found Life in the Ordinances Oh! this is that which makes Gods people desire to come to Ordinances and to bless God for them because they do find Life conveyed to their Souls by them that 's a notable place in 1 Cor. 1. 18. That the preaching of the Gospel is the power of God to whom why to us that are saved i. e. that are partakers of this Freedom by Christ one of the names of which as you have heard is Salvation 3. This Freedom by Christ puts Life into our Communion I mean that converse which we have one with another when we are in company together Oh! if we are but made Free by Christ and then come into one anothers society we are fitted by it for a living Discourse together for the having of some heart-warming conference each with other If there be two or three or more of these persons met together 't is to be hoped that they wont part one from another without some spiritual good to one anothers Souls Their being thus related one to another in the Freedom that Christ gives to believers will stir up their hearts to heavenly Communication to help one another forward in the ways of God They whose Priviledg and State this is they carry spiritual heat about them so that when they come into the company of others they 'l glow as Mary and Elizabeth when they come together Luke 1. they did as it were sparkle in their gracious Discourse one with another When they that are in the Bondage of sin and strangers to Christ meet together many times there you shall have the Language of Hell in their mouths corrupt Communication that discovers what they are for their Speech bewrays them and others of them tho they are civilized yet their talk 't will be but earthly oh how their breath smells of the earth If one strive to get them into any discourse that is above the things of this World oh what dead companions they are then you put them out of their Element and if you would not have them speak of things below then you stop their mouths they must say nothing for they savour not the things of God And tho 't is true that Hypocrites may hold discourse about good things if they be persons that have parts and gifts and brain knowledg yet oh there 's no Life in that Communion they are not in this state of Freedom by Christ that should put Life into it and make them speak of good things from a Principle within but now Christs redeemed ones they are living companions and Communion with them is sometimes as it were a corner of Heaven If they can but once get into gracious discourse together as that is to often somewhat hard to do what for want of coming oftner together and by
as much intend them as the other that his people might not precisely know the very time when their deliverance should be that it should be this year or this day to teach them still to depend upon him for deliverance even when they might think that their deliverance was nearest We must trust God for deliverance but the very time when it shall be we must leave that to him He useth to reserve that in his own breast But to go on 3. In that deliverance God honoured his people Deut. 4. 34. Isa 43. 3 4. He gat them a Name and made them high above all Nations They were a People that all the World did talk of that heard what God had done for them how he had redeemed them and how he had chosen them and how he went before them Well now beloved you see this was an honourable deliverance that God gave to them but this Freedom by Christ is the most honourable Freedom of all God never so honoured himself by any deliverance as by this nor did he ever so honour his promises nor did he ever so honour his people For the first see John 12. 28. for the second Luke 1. 68. to 74. for the third Luke 2. 32. They are so honoured by this that they that partake of this Freedom are said to be made Kings to God Property 4. This Freedom is a Heavenly Freedom They who are interested in it are said to be partakers of the heavenly calling Heb. 3. 1. And they are called the heavenly Jerusalem cap. 12. 22. and Jerusalem which is above Gal. 4. 26. 'T is such an Heavenly Freedom that the very Angels desire to look into this salvation which it brings 1 Pet. 1. 10 11 12. Other Deliverances were earthly or at most the best and greatest of them as I said were but types and shadows of better things but this Freedom is all made up of Heavenliness I shall make out this by Four things a little 1. It is the Sons Freedom 2. The Souls Freedom 3. The Saints Freedom 4. The Scripture-Freedom 1. I say 't is the Sons Freedom that which the Lord Jesus Christ the Son of God hath procured 'T is the Son that makes free You have had this largely opened to you Now what an heavenly Freedom must this be that God imployed his own Son in and sent him from Heaven on purpose about it When the Lord would redeem his people out of Egypt he sent Moses and Aaron for that work and they were but Men but when he would give this Freedom he sent one that was more than a Man 'T is true he raised up Christ from amongst the Jews according to the flesh and the humane Nature did not come immediately from God but 't was made of the Seed of David Yea but God was manifested in this flesh and upon this account he is said to come down from Heaven John 3. 13. and to come out from God and to come forth from the Father cap. 16. 27 28. So that in this Freedom beloved there came one from the Throne of God yea one that was God to give it to us 2. 'T is the Souls Freedom the Freedom of the Soul Now you know they must be all heavenly things that can reach that to do it any good In other Deliverances they were the Bodies of men that were set free but in this Christ brings Souls out of Prison and Bondage And indeed herein lies the very main of all the excellency of this Freedom that it is a Freedom for Souls If I should have said nothing else about it but only this That the precious Souls of Men and Women are redeemed by it you must needs have said 't is an excellent Freedom Yea beloved all that I have said or have yet to say or can say runs into this Oh blessed joyful heavenly Freedom by Christ What a thing is this What to bring salvation to Souls to set the Heart Mind Will Understanding Affections Conscience at liberty that when all was bound within with spiritual Chains and Fetters that were Ten thousand times stronger than those that are made of Brass and Iron that when the Soul sat in darkness and in the shadow of death there should be redemption for that that Christ should pity lost and undone souls Oh heavenly heavenly heavenly Freedom Well may I use those words to you here which the Angel used to the Shepherds Luke 2. 10 11. Behold I bring you good tidings of great joy which shall be to all people for unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savioue which is Christ the Lord. Here 's a Saviour for your Souls Where are your Souls Sirs by Nature What a condition are they in Oh! they are kept the closest Prisoners that ever were in the deepest darkest Dungeon that ever was and this Prison they are cast into for Debt for Theft for Murder for Treason and no Debt like this Debt for 't is the Debt of Sins and Iniquities and no Theft like this Theft for 't is for robbing God of his Glory and no Murder like this Mruder for 't is for destroying your own Souls and no Treason like this Treason for t is against the Crown of Heaven And yet if you will repent and believe the Gospel here 's a Freedom for your Souls out of all this Methinks it should be even with us in the hearing of this as 't is said in Luke 19. 37 38. that we should rejoyce and praise God with a loud voice And if we should not be affected with this Freedom one might think as ver 40. that if we should hold our peace the stones would immediately cry out 3. It is the Saints Freedom Indeed 't is to make sinners free but it is not the Freedom of sinners That is as long as persons are out of Christ they cannot truly call it theirs 'T is the portion and priviledg of the children of God A wicked man may have it but a true Believer hath it The one is under a possibility of it but the other is in possession of it Rom. 5. 2. They have their standing in this Grace They stand upon Gospel-ground Now what a Heavenly Freedom is this that none but Saints enjoy The men of the World may enjoy other Freedoms but one must be in Christ to enjoy this It belongs to the holy Company Eph. 2. 19. Ye are Fellow-Citizens with the Saints Indeed this Freedom doth not find us Saints but it makes us so And therefore hereby you may know whether you have any thing of it Do you think that you are made free by Christ and abide ungodly To be sure you deceive your selves The Lord Christ never redeemed any Soul to leave it where he found it he puts it into a contrary state to that which it had before he found it in darkness but he puts it into Light he found it in Death but he puts it into Life he found it in Wickedness but he puts
spots will be all out Thou Child of God shall have no more of this deadness no more of this hardness and unbelief of heart here thou canst not pray one quarter of an hour without vain thoughts there thou shalt praise and glorifie him to all eternity without the least distraction Oh! what a Priviledge will this be when sin and you shall be quite parted Now you hear of it in every duty but there you may be good as long and as much as you will and no evil to hinder you Paul's complaint is now at an end as to himself because he is at home Rom. 7. 21. Priviledge 5. They who are made free by Christ are made nigh to God Eph. 2. 13. But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the Blood of Christ As the people of Israel whom he redeemed out of Egypt are called a people near to God Psal 147. 14. You know 't is counted a Priviledg to stand near to an earthly King in some cases The Queen of Sheba pronounced the Servants of Solomon happy upon this account 1 Kings 10. 8. But as Christ said once of himself a greater than Solomon is here here 's the King of Heaven and Earth that is the most high God and these are near to him whatsoever is dear to us is near to us Now the Saints are very dear to God How dear is a Friend to you And how dear are your Children to you And how dear is the Apple of your eye to you Why by these names the Lord calls his people in the Scripture Yea beloved the Lord is very near to them when they think he is far off from them Psal 73. 23. don 't make account that God is at such a distance from you you that belong to him as many times you do you think he is gone away so that he will never return and all that while he is hard by you if you could but see him remember what he saith in Isa 41. 10. Fear thou not for I am with thee c. Priviledg 6. This Freedom brings Union with Christ Eph. 5. 30. it joyns those to him who are redeemed by an inseparable bond Christ is in them and they are in him therefore Paul saith Gal. 2. 20. that Christ liveth in him and 't is said of the Saints that Christ dwells in their hearts by Faith Eph. 3. 17. and Christ and they are not to be considered as two but as one he owns them as his Members and you know they are one with the head as his Wife and she is one with the Husband Now what an unspeakable Priviledg is it to be united to Jesus Christ and what greater honour can a Soul desire or enjoy than this is If you have such a deal of comfort from those earthly Relations in which you stand one to another as some of you have tho this is a Union of a low degree in comparison of this yet you find there is much sweetness in being joyned to a loving Wife or a loving Husband Oh what is it to be joyned to the Lord Jesus Christ Obj. But you 'l say What 's a bare Vnion if there be no Communications from him if Christ doth not give out that which he is and that which he hath to us there 's many a one that is joyned to another in an uniting Relation that is little the better for it Ans Yea but to be sure they who are one with Christ shall be the better for it for in the next place Priviledg 7. From this Union flows Communion with Christ and a communication from Christ of abundance of good things to them I will instance in some 1. They partake of his likeness and image to this you read that they were of old predestinated Rom. 8. 29. Hence they are said to have put on Christ as soon as ever he brought them into this Freedom he began presently as I may say to draw his Picture upon them and they grow more and more like him every day by resembling of him in his Graces and walking The Saints desire to live no other life but that which is suitable to the life that Christ led and they would fain imitate and follow him in his holy conversation they 〈◊〉 mightily taken with it all their trouble is that they can reach it no more 2. They partake of his fulness Joh. 1. 16. 'T is their Priviledg being made free by him to be fetching from him what they need for tho he hath it in himself yet he doth not keep it to himself no he means to be liberal of what he hath to all his Members He is not like the Rich covetous men of the World that tho they have abundance yet they hoard it up they have no readiness in them to distribute but Christ is all for distributing and that which his redeemed ones have had and shall have from him is an unknown deal 3. They partake of his Death and Resurrection Rom. 6. 5. They dye to sin by the vertue of Christs Death and they live to God by the vertue of Christs rising again For beloved Christ did not do those things barely that they should end in himself that none should have a fellowship with him in them But his design was that his Death should bring forth another Death and his Resurrection another Resurrection in the Souls of his people that they should feel in themselves that he died by their being crucified to sin and crucified to the World and that they should feel in themselves that he rose by their newness of life and by their setting their affections upon things above Now this is a great Priviledg to have the experience of these things within us people talk how Christ died and rose again but where is our conformity to this Oh! how little doth the power and the virtue of this come to us 4. They partake of his Righteousness I mean 't is imputed to them as their own that perfect unspotted obedience of his 't is to cover all the unrighteousness that is in them 2 Cor. 5 ult Oh beloved what a thing is this that a righteousness that is just as the Scripture would have it without the least defect wherein all the holy rules and commands of the word are fulfilled to a tittle that this should be made over to one with as great and sure an interest in it as if one had done all this in ones person why thus 't is with those whom Christ hath made free 5. They partake of his Intercession the Lord Jesus is at the right hand of the Father on their behalf Heb. 9. 24. he is speaking good words to God for them continually and his intercession is powerful Oh with what great Arguments can Christ back all the requests that he makes to his Father for them even from what himself hath done and suffered and satisfied 6. They shall partake with Christ in his Glory many of them are
condition but if ever he were a liar he is a liar in this and God will judg him and his instruments for bringing up this evil report upon the good Land which he hath given his people Beloved be not discouraged by this slander from looking after this heavenly Canaan as the Children of Israel were from entring into the earthly Canaan when the Spies that went to search the land had spoken evil of it to them for as Caleb said to them the same I say to you The Land is an exceeding good Land I mean now the state into which Christ hath brought believers is even in this World a joyful state You shall see how it was prophecied of in the Old Testament that it should be so Psal 67. read vers 1 2. where he speaks of the coming of this Freedom God be merciful unto us and bless us and cause his face to shine upon us Selah That thy way may be known upon earth thy saving health among all nations and what follows why vers 3 4 5. Let the people praise thee O God let all the people praise thee O let the nations be glad and sing for joy there 's the joy that it brings with it So Isa 35. 10. this chapter is to he understood of Gospel Freedom and Salvation and mark what Joy here is now The ransomed of the Lord shall return and come to Zion with songs and everlasting joy upon their heads they shall obtain joy and gladness and sorrow and sighing shall flee away Obj. But where can you shew us the people in the New Testament that live so comfortably and joyfully by this Freedom and that in this World Why turn to Rom. 5. 2. By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand and rejoyce in hope of the glory of God and vers 10 11. For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son much more being reconciled we shall be saved by his life And not only so but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ by whom we have received the attenement Obj. But it may be they were a people that met with no great afflictions if they had it would have spoiled their joy tho they were in this Freedom Well for that I 'll give you a full Scripture see 1 Pet. 1. These were scattered abroad by persecution vers 1. They had manifold temptations vers 6. And in v. 7. the Apostle speaks of the tryal of their Faith by fire Yet in vers 8. how comfortable they were for all this In whom tho now ye see him not yet believing ye rejoyce with joy unspeakable and full of glory Sirs you that are out of this Freedom are hindred by it from abundance of joy you don't know what true joy and true comfort is without it 5. It is good to make us taste the sweetness that is in the ways of God 't was the Spouse of Christ the redeemed company that uttered that in Cant. 2. 3. I sat down under his shadow with great delight and his fruit was sweet to my taste Duties Ordinances are sapless things without this but they are refreshing yea ravishing things with it What made David say that a day in Gods Courts was better than a thousand otherwhere 't was because he was in this Freedom Why did the Lord call his Ordinances that should be under the Gospel A feast of fat things a feast of wine on the lees of fat things full of marrow of wine on the lees well fined Isa 25. 6. But because he knew they would be so to Souls that should be brought into this Freedom Oh this is that which will make a Prayer sweet and a good Sermon sweet and a Sacrament sweet and Grace and the Exercise of it sweet You that are in the Bondage of sins may come and hear precious truths but you cannot tell what is in them for savour and relish that Bondage hath put your mouths quite out of taste as I may say to you there 's nothing so sweet as that which is most bitter and that is sin if your palat were not vitiated by this Bondage you would call it as the Scripture calls it viz. The gall of bitterness and the bond of iniquity Acts 8. 23. 6. This Freedom is good to make us spiritually useful Indeed one that hath it not may be useful and very useful for earthly respects and if he should be taken away by death there might be a great miss of him the family might want him or the Parish may want him But spiritually useful such a one is not nor can be any otherwise then as a wooden leg can be useful to the body which tho it helps it a little yet 't is but outwardly it hath none of that life or motion that the true members have But now they whom Christ hath made free oh what a deal they are good for upon a spiritual account they are useful persons to bring up a Family for God they are good for the Souls of their Relations You that are out of Christ you may be good for the bodies of your Children you may be good to provide them Meat and Drink and Cloaths and to take care of them when any of them fall sink that they may not want attendance or the like or you may be good to train them up in a civil way and to lay up for them what you can for a Portion in this World or to put them to a good Trade or help them to as rich a match as you can and in these kind of things your usefulness to them is at its journeys end As for the poor Souls of your Children you forget them because you never rememberd your own it may be you 'l say to your Children sometimes you must be a good boy or a good girl and there 's all the good counsel that they shall have of you but alas you take no care to tell them which way they must be good indeed and truly if God should take you away from them and leave them Fatherless and Motherless their outward man would miss you sadly it may be but their Souls would not you were never good for them but they who are in this Freedom are good for the Souls of their Family And beloved they are very useful persons to promote a good work when they see it would tend much to the Glory of God to have it carried on and to take occasions and opportunities of speaking to others about everlasting concernments and to mourn for the sins of the times and places in which they live and to stand in the gap when the Wrath of God is breaking in upon a Nation and when God takes away one of these oh what a miss there is of them and what a loss 't is upon the best account If God had pleased a hundred wicked men might have been better spared than one of these The least of these
snare is broken and we are escaped If you be not made free by Christ you will have a darling sin Vse 5. Of Expostulation And that with such as are not made free by Christ And here tho I shall speak but few words yet I wish they may be piercing What mean you that you don't accept of Christs excellent Freedom 'T is to be had and you want it and you 'l be eternally lost without it and yet you abide in your Bondage the sins you had you have still the sloth that was in you is in you still I dont perceive some of you stir a jot towards the New-birth I have been endeavouring upon this Text to hale you to Christ and yet you hang back Why Sirs for the Lords sake what do you mean I thought that if any Scripture in the Bible would have won you this and that which hath been said upon it would have done it And now after I have delivered all this message from God to you will you not here I must needs here put you in mind of the Prophets words to David what he said to him when he had delivered Gods message to him that I say to you 2 Sam. 24. 13. Now advise and see what an answer I shall return to him that sent me You have heard what I have said from Christ to you now let me hear what I shall say from you to Christ I must go back to him for a new message now I have done with this subject But what Sirs shall I answer him when he asks me what is become of the old You preached a great while about Freedom that I had to give sinners how did it speed with your hearers I should be glad with all my heart that I might be able to say to Christ of this Text as they did of the Talents see Luk. 19. 15 16 18. Lord thy pound hath gained ten pounds saith one five pounds saith another So that my Text that I have been a trading with for God amongst you had gained ten Souls or five Souls or one Soul rather then nothing Well but what shall I say to him that sent me I must go to reckon with him for this Text and as near as I can I must give him a faithful account and that is that I don't hear of one that is converted by all these Sermons not a Man or Woman of you that were out of Christ when I began them have been with me to bring me this joyful news that this Text hath been the word of Life and Power to you If any such mercy hath been shewed to you 't is between God and your selves but if it be so indeed methinks you should easily conclude Certainly Gods beginning to work upon me under such a mans Ministry must needs be welcome newes to him and therefore I 'll go to him and tell him what God hath done for my Soul And Friends I long to see some of you to come to my house upon such an errand I know my labour hath not been in vain in speaking of this Freedom to them here who are in Christ Jesus but God hath given them many a sweet refreshment in the hearing of it and if there should be none that are brought in yet blessed be God that there are some that are built up But oh Sirs what will become of you that have neither gotten nor are getting this Freedom Why don't you consider before it be too late under what Offers of Grace you live what heart-rending thoughts do you think you shall have a little while hence when you shall look back upon the opportunities you have lost without hope of having any more Will it not be an heavy charge against you that you have despised a precious Christ and lost a precious Soul If you believe that you are sinners what 's the reason that you don't regard a Saviour Is Christ beholding to you to accept of his Salvation or are you beholding to him that he is so willing you should have it If you could be contented to live in your sins all your days can you be contented to suffer for them to all eternity I tell you Hell is ready for you if you will not repent and believe the Gospel and the more calls you have now the more Torments you 'l have there Is it fit that such sinful Worms as you are should take upon you to tell Christ that you wont have him And do you think that he doth not observe your unkindness and frowardness to him tho for the present he lets you alone If you have no love for Christ have you none for your selves Will this World last always that you provide no better for another Do you think that Christ cannot tell what to do with his mercy because he offers it to you And now I have blown the Trumpet and given you warning because I see the Sword is a coming now read Ezek. 33. the nine first Verses Vse 6. Of Exhortation Take it amongst you in three things briefly 1. Bless the Lord that you live under the Ministration of such an excellent Freedom Oh Sirs think what a mercy you have and be thankful How many be there that want what you enjoy God hath made the way to Heaven plain before you You may see by the light that shines amongst you how fain he would have you saved You may read those words as your own Princiledge Luke 1. 78 79. Through the tender mercy of God the day-spring from on high hath visited us To give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death to guide our feet into the way of peace God might have left you as he hath many without the means of Grace your feet might have stumbled upon the dark Mountains you might have gone all your lives and not have heard so much of Christ as you have heard from this one Text. Oh! that now you could be praising God for his goodness to your Souls I say no more to you but this Unthankfulness for the Gospel endangers the Gospel they who don 't look upon it as a great mercy are not like to have such a mercy long 2. If any of you be looking after Freedom for your Souls or when ever it shall please God that any of you shall which the Lord grant may be quickly for in this case delays are dangerous be sure you look after Freedom indeed take heed that you be not deceived with a Counterfeit with the shew and shadow of this Freedom but that it be that very Freedom which Christ gives to believers An hypocrite he thinks he hath this Freedom but he is in Bondage still you never have this true Freedom till your hearts be right in the sight of God Acts 8. compare vers 21 23. together There be two great fears concerning persons that are out of Christ the first whether ever they will look after him at all and then if they do whether it will be in